10,000 Words

The Pros and Cons of Content Farm Writing

editern — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:42:13 +0000

Ever read an article on how to mash potatoes or fix your toilet? Chances are, if you’ve typed anything in Google search starting with “how to” or “what to do when,” you’ve read articles written by content farmers, freelance writers who work for sites like eHow and Livestrong.com.

In the latest Mediabistro AvantGuild feature, a former Demand Media writer tells what it’s really like toiling on the content farm. On a typical day, she writes, she’d find assignments ranging from “the serious to the completely inane.”

There were usually plenty of writeable titles to choose from, but occasionally I’d come across a dud like “How to Furnish a Giraffe” or “20 Benefits of a 3CQ On the JLRM36.” There were also a thousand iterations of the same article: “How to Dye Your Hair Pink,” “Best Pink Hair Color for Brunettes” or “How to Change Your Hair from Blonde to Pink.” Sometimes these redundancies were beneficial, because I could use the same resources for multiple articles and save time on research. At others, the droning nature of this process made me wonder, “What am I doing?”

For more, read My Year as a Content Farm Writer.

The full version of this article is exclusively available to Mediabistro AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, register now for as little as $55 a year for access to hundreds of articles like this one, discounts on Mediabistro seminars and workshops, and all sorts of other bonuses.

– Sherry Yuan

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

AOL’s CEO on Patch, Native Advertising and Why Journalism Won’t Die

Mona Zhang — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 16:24:19 +0000

This morning, media pros gathered at the Bryant Park Grill for the inaugural “Media Minds” breakfast, featuring Tim Armstrong, chairman and CEO of AOL, and Susan Lyne, the newly installed CEO of AOL’s brand group. Alex Jones, director of the Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics & Public Policy at Harvard, moderated the event, which covered everything from women in leadership roles to the Time Inc. spinoff. While the panelists shared many insights, Armstrong’s comments on the future of content were heartening.

While the rise of digital has been blamed for the “death” of journalism, people are still voracious content consumers. ”Technology changes a lot, but human behavior doesn’t change as much,” said Armstrong. “One of the things that’s most important to [humans] is trusting information.” He cited Google eye-tracking studies that show that, when people search, they immediately look at the URL after seeing a result to asses where the information came from. “Human beings want fast information from trusted sources… trusted brands of information, and I believe trusted brands of information come from powerful sources of people.” That means you, editors and journos. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Are We Stuck with Hashtags and Like Buttons?

Karen Fratti — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 12:22:27 +0000

The coverage on Nieman Journalism Lab yesterday of the Engaging News Project pretty much ruined my coffee break as I clicked through the research: there are few things I love more than seemingly wonky research about journalism and democracy. Especially when it’s put in action. Talia Stroud’s research shows, in the most simple explanation, that when you change the language, it can also change how people engage with your website. That should perk most of our ears up. If you want, you can already start making your readers ‘Respect’ stories instead of ‘Like’ them with a WordPress plug-in.

What you can’t make people do, according to her research, is actively seek out information that goes against their views, or their niche. That sounds like old news to me. We’re all in our own little ‘bubbles’ to use Bill Maher’s lingo. That’s bad for democracy, but good for online publishers. It also has something to do with why magazines have fared better in a digital landscape. Chris Hughes of The New Republic spoke to a lot of like-minded, nodding heads this week about how readers (users? can we agree on a terminology?) still look for ‘curated editorial experiences’ whether online or off. That’s something not easy to do with a daily news site, but the goal of most magazines — whether it’s the New Republic or Slate or Field and Stream.

Apart from saving democracy from ourselves online, the Respect button has my head spinning for another reason. In terms of design and user experience, it’s hard for pubs to break out of the Web 2.0 standards whether it’s about asking readers to like things, comment, or use hashtags. I’m sure there are many strategists and design experts who haven’t slept considering the same things. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing that everything starts to look the same, all the time. I don’t know for how much longer I even want to ‘like’, let alone ‘respect’ content online, although that’s the formula publications work with to determine all the numbers that make up their bottom line.

Maybe it’s the stormy weather on the East Coast that has me thinking too much about it — but what do you think? If we’ve moved past Web 2.0 and onto the semantic web, how does that affect how we’ll have to start thinking about reader engagement and page design? Is it just that we’ll be able to better search our hashtags and generate more niche content to read?

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Washington Post Announces ‘Sponsored Views’ in their Comment Section

Karen Fratti — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 19:31:20 +0000

What’s worse than a politically charged comment section? How about ‘sponsored views,’ the latest from the New Ventures team at the Washington Post. As if there wasn’t enough noise, the Post announced today that organizations can pay to have their comment, labeled and washed in a yellow hue, at the top of a comment section on the Post editorial section. So, say, the Center for American Progress pays a fee and their 600 word response to an editorial is there, front and center.

The good news? It is properly labeled — you can’t miss that it’s sponsored and it all blends in rather well with the user experience. Much like all of those “from around the web” links we’ve gotten used to skimming over at the end of an article. The Post wrote in the press release that the product:

offers an opportunity for advocacy, communications and government affairs professionals to place their message in front of key constituents.

It doesn’t really — it’s just a lot more noise, which I don’t mind when it’s a link to a slideshow of ten stomach slimming fruits, but is mildly irritating since it’s politically oriented. I like being able to filter out the free speech I think is stupid.

What do you think? Where do you see this going?

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Eminent EICs Offer Advice to Aspiring Media Pros

Mona Zhang — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 18:26:35 +0000

Previously, we gathered some of the highlights of last night’s “Media Talk” panel at NYU. Here, we’ll bring you advice from all the panelists: James Bennet of The Atlantic, Joanna Coles of Cosmopolitan, Chris Hughes of The New Republic and Jane Pratt of xoJane. The panel was moderated by David Carr, who asked the panelists to offer their advice for students who want to get into the media biz. Here are their edited responses:

Joanna Coles, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan:

This business is all about ideas. If you have a good idea, I or one of my team, will hire you to write it. It can’t be a subject or topic you happen to be interested in, it has to be a genuine idea, you have to have a story. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

How to Keep the Comments Section Productive

Mona Zhang — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 18:11:39 +0000

(L to R) David Carr of The New York Times, James Bennet of The Atlantic, Joanna Coles of Cosmopolitan, Chris Hughes of The New Republic, Jane Pratt of xojane.com

Last night, eminent editors-in-chief gathered for a discussion at NYU’s annual “Media Talk” panel. The event was moderated by David Carr of The New York Times and the panelists included: James Bennet of The Atlantic, Joanna Coles of Cosmopolitan, Chris Hughes of The New Republic and Jane Pratt of xojane.com. Among the discussion of the changing media biz was some helpful advice on how journalists and publishers can approach online commenters. We’ve gathered some of the highlights below: continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

InsideClimateNews: A ‘David and Goliath’ Story for Digital Publishing

editern — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 15:36:24 +0000

Earlier this year, InsideClimate News won the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting against 50-something other entrants, beating out both The Boston Globe and The Washington Post.

How did they manage it?

Editor & Publisher recently spoke with the editors behind the award-winning investigative piece, “The Dilbit Disaster: Inside the Biggest Oil Spill You’ve Never Heard Of,” which took form as a narrative detailing the events of the 2010 Michigan oil spill. Reporters Elizabeth McGowan and Lisa Song spent seven months gathering information from the local residents, scientists and company involved with the spill.

This online-only, nonprofit news organization had to really work “with the elements,” said Susan White, the website’s executive editor — and she wasn’t referring to the natural ones. The team of only seven full-time journalists faced difficulties that any small, nonprofit organization is already well-aware of: money and resources.

In addition to these scarcities, InsideClimate News faced a unique challenge that most digital startups can quickly relate to. ”We are truly a virtual organization,” White said. “I am in San Diego, publisher David Sasson is in Brooklyn, and our reporters are in Washington, Boston and New York.”

Yet, being separated by state lines and time zones wasn’t the most difficult aspect of working on the piece. “We [had] no resources and little funding. Managing editor Stacy Feldman kept the site running, and there were a lot of days we didn’t have a new story to put up,” she said.

This ‘David and Goliath story,’ as coined by White’s husband, is proof that nonprofit, online-only pubs are doing more than just staying — they’re winning.

Read the full story on Editor & Publisher.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Well-Reported Features Net Big Bucks at California Lawyer

editern — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 09:28:16 +0000

California Lawyer may cover more nationally-oriented stories, like Supreme Court cases, but the mag always ties it all back to its home state. To land a byline here, it indeed helps to be based in California, but writers don’t necessarily have to live in the Golden State to pitch.

Aimed at — you guessed it — California lawyers, the pub covers one of the most talked-about legal markets with analysis, in-depth features, technology updates and practical advice. “We cover groundbreaking cases, compelling controversies and fascinating personalities, and, as a monthly magazine, we seek to go beyond the headlines of the day with lively writing and in-depth reporting,” said managing editor Chuleenan Svetvilas.

Even better, they’re looking for more freelance feature writers and pay up to $3,000 for quality pieces. For pitching etiquette and editors’ contact info, read How To Pitch: California Lawyer.

– Sherry Yuan

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Google, Native Ads and What It Means For Publications

Lauren Hockenson — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 13:00:02 +0000

Earlier this week, Google solidified their take on so-called “native advertising,” one that they have been slowly crafting due to the rise of these advertisements in places like BuzzFeed and the Atlantic.

To put it simply: Google has created resources for publications to build native ads with Google’s blessing, but you’re not going to see it anywhere near Google News.

Tools for native advertising are a first for Google, as companies have had to scramble to bring native advertising templates to their own publications. Google will now support these ads through DoubleClick for Advertisers, allowing publishers to adopt a plug-and-play code system that makes setting up and tagging the ads much more easier to execute.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Get Advice from the National Crowdfunding Association Executive Director

admin — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 11:59:21 +0000

Trying to use crowdfunding sites to launch your next journalism project?

National Crowdfunding Association executive director David Marlett will lead a short Crowdfunding for Media webcast with Mediabistro. Follow this link to register:

In this webcast, David Marlett, executive director of the National Crowdfunding Association, will use examples from the audience to explain how just about any project can be successfully crowdfunded. David will also outline how upcoming legal changes will allow for equity crowdfunding and Reg D/accredited investor crowdfunding. You’ll learn how to: Choose the right platform and reach out to investors for your potential project. Raise the right amount of money and provide appropriate investor rewards. Identify entrepreneurs whose businesses might make good investments. Understand upcoming legal changes that will affect crowdfunding.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

BBC.com Launches New Business Sections

Karen Fratti — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 12:50:41 +0000

BBC.com announced today that it’s launching two new verticals –BBC Capital and BBC Entrepreneurship. Jennifer Merritt, formerly of the WSJ and Business Week, will head up the Capital section, which features sections on Leadership, Personal Finance, and Workplace with featured columnists Liz Garone, Kelsey Hubbard, and Ron Alsop, respectively.

The Entrepreneurship section will, according to the release this morning:

provide small business owners and investors with engaging insights from people who have made their businesses successful. The site will feature weekly insights from award-winning BBC business correspondent, Peter Day, and a series called Thinking Business that will examine the latest ideas – for example, why are there so many startup competitions?

The new verticals are part of a move to charge “into business coverage with full force,” according to Nick Ascheim, SVP of Consumer Digital at BBC.com.

What do you think of the expansion and the content?

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Get Your Portfolio On: Clippings.me Launches Professional Package

Karen Fratti — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 11:54:22 +0000

Every summer, I promise that I’m going to use the downtime to get my act together and work on my website and portfolio, and then get lazy about doing all of the work. That’s why my ears always perk up when I hear about portfolio sites that do all of the hard work for you.

It’s surprising that there aren’t more portfolio building sites targeted at journalists, ones focused on just showcasing your clips, without making you choose background themes and fonts reminiscent of an early MySpace page. But don’t forget about Clippings.me if you, like me, need to get your clips together and don’t have the advanced skills to create your own gorgeous, professional website.

Clippings.me was a pioneer in the market and has just launched a professional package that makes using the site more intuitive and, quite frankly, makes it something you can be proud to link to or use as a digital resume.

The Pro Package runs you $8 per month. You can upload as many clips — print and web articles, video, even podcasts — to your page, as you can with the free version. The perks include being able to host your own domain and have access to social media stats. You can see exactly where your specific clips were shared and commented on, as well as your clippings.me profile. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Hilarious “Mayor vs. Bear” Tweets Go Viral

Lauren Hockenson — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 13:30:29 +0000

A 250-pound bear climbs a tree in Connecticut, and the local mayor live tweets about it. It sounds like a pretty standard day on Twitter, but this particular encounter was different.

It went crazy viral.

How does a seemingly ordinary alert from a mayor about a bear incident become the subject of the entire Internet’s curiosity? Well, Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton’s Twitter presence explains a lot about his personality. Known for tweeting rap lyrics and maintaining a casually silly presence on the social media site, Boughton is the mayoral version of a lounge lizard compared to other high-profile political social media stars (the heroic Cory Booker, hailing one state over in New Jersey, comes to mind).

continued…

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Boston Review Launches New Site

Karen Fratti — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 12:00:44 +0000

The Boston Review launched their new website today, and whether you’re a dedicated reader or not, it’s worth a peek.

The magazine has always seen good design as a way to engage to readers. In 2010, they switched from a black and white tabloid to a glossy, full color mag. In print, they wanted it to be beautiful and permanent, according to marketing director Daniel Pritchard, “something our readers could keep on the shelf.”

On the web, “the goal is to engage new readers, so we wanted it to be easily accessible and easier to navigate, expressing the same aesthetic but thinking about the structure very differently,” Pritchard told me in an email. I think those goals are reflected in the new design.

Some features:

continued…

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3 Ways to Up Your Reader Engagement

Karen Fratti — Thu, 30 May 2013 10:30:58 +0000

We all have social media and digital best practices coming out of ears. But after thinking about how big media companies make their dough, I realized that, although there aren’t always the resources and staff and innovation teams at smaller papers, there are some simple, almost silly, tips smaller papers can take from the behemoths in terms of reader engagement. Things that make your organization seem relevant and savvy.

1. Go Vice

Ok, you don’t have to start covering the sex beat in your town, but start thinking outside the box. Vice isn’t just a magazine anymore, it’s also a production company, and a marketing agency. Is there a crime beat reporter who could easily start posting video reports along with his written one? Are there events or causes you could sponsor that you aren’t? Run a summer program where high school students can run their own vertical. Nothing is more niche than a local hometown. Be all over it. If there is a kinky sex beat, start covering it. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.